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This introductory chapter first sets out the purpose of the book, which is to examine the main changes to the welfare state since New Labour came to power in 1997, updating existing accounts, as they tend to focus on the first term of government up to 2001. The main focus of the book, however, is to examine the degree of change that has occurred in the welfare state – the book's analytical template is New Labour's modernization of the welfare state. The elements of modernization are examined to see whether there was a coherent modernization package in different sectors, or whether...

This introductory chapter first sets out the purpose of the book, which is to examine the main changes to the welfare state since New Labour came to power in 1997, updating existing accounts, as they tend to focus on the first term of government up to 2001. The main focus of the book, however, is to examine the degree of change that has occurred in the welfare state – the book's analytical template is New Labour's modernization of the welfare state. The elements of modernization are examined to see whether there was a coherent modernization package in different sectors, or whether modernization actually means different things in different sectors. The chapter then discusses Labour election manifestos and the meaning of modernization.